Pain.
Li Na gasped, her eyes flying open. She clutched her chest, expecting to find blood, broken bones, the icy grip of death. But instead- warmth. Her heart raced, her body trembling, but she was alive.
The familiar scent of sandalwood drifted through the air. She blinked and found herself lying on a soft canopy bed, sunlight streaming through lace curtains.
Her breath hitched. This..... this was her old bedroom.
The vanity by the window, the embroidered quilt her mother had made, even the childish sketches she had once pinned on the wall- all exactly as they had been ten years ago.
''No.....'' Her fingers shook as she touched the quilt. The fabric was fresh, not worn with time. Her eyes darted to the mirror across the room- and the reflection staring back made her blood run cold.
A younger version of herself. Smooth skin without the scars, clear eyes without despair.
Tears blurred her vision. This isn't possible. I died..... Chen Wei and Zhao Mei.... they-
A knock at the door jolted her.
''Na'er, are you awake?'' A gentle, loving voice.
Her mother.
Li Na's eyes widened as the door opened, revealing Madam Li, her face glowing with life. Not pale and lifeless in a coffin, as Li Na remembered, but smiling warmly, just as she had a decade ago.
''Mother...'' The word broke from her lips, choked with emotion.
Her mother frowned, worried. ''What's wrong, silly girl? Did you have a nightmare?''
Li Na threw herself into her arms, trembling as sobs pored out. she clung to the woman she had buried once before, her heart aching with desperate mix of grief and joy.
''I.... I'll never let anyone hurt you again,'' she whispered fiercely against her mother's shoulder.
Her mother chuckled patting her back. ''What are you saying, child?
But Li Na's gaze had already hardened. As she pulled back, her tear-streaked face was filled not with weakness, but with icy determination.
She had been given a second life.
This time, she would not be a fool.
This time, she would protect her family.
And this time-Chen Wei and Zhao Mei would pay in blood and tears.
Her lips curved into a cold smile.
''The game has just begun.''